Created in 2002, the National Gay Flag Football League (NGFFL) is a 501(c)(3) sports organization that seeks to promote the positive social and athletic enjoyment of American Flag Football. Through our league, our events and most importantly our members, we also seek to foster and augment the self-respect of all lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons and to promote respect and understanding from the larger community.

While particular emphasis is placed on these specific goals, it is a fundamental principle of NGFFL that all activities, social and athletic, are conducted to be inclusive in nature and that no individual shall be excluded from participating on the basis of sexual orientation, gender, race, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, political beliefs, athletic ability, physical challenge, HIV status or gender identity.

Currently, over 200 teams in 23 leagues across the United States and Canada are members of NGFFL. Teams representing these leagues participate in the national tournament titled Gay Bowl, hosted every Columbus Day Weekend in a different member city.

Want to Join?

We take pride in providing a well-run league at a reasonable cost and are very interested in having new players and volunteers join us. If you are interested in learning how you can join or simply to get more information, please contact our Director of Outreach Russ Edra at russ@ngffl.com or 310.709.3116.

From the Commissioner

Welcome to our new website! You’ll notice that things around here don’t look the way they used to. We've been hard at work on the new site and hope that you find your experience with it both user friendly and enjoyable. Don’t keep us a secret, and share our new site with a friend!

Fred Smoot played in the NFL for nine seasons, spending four years with the Washington Redskins before heading to the Minnesota Vikings for two seasons, and then returning to Washington for the final three years of his career.

In that time, Smoot said in a Reddit AMA, he played with "several" gay players. The full exchange is excerpted below.

Q: Did you encounter any gay players?

A: yes. several.

Q: At the professional level? Was it a don't ask don't tell kind of thing, or did everybody on the team generally know?